Persulfate activation enhanced by sulfur-doped cobaltous tetroxide for rapid and efficient degradation of atrazine

BACKGROUND Atrazine is present in aquatic systems as a pesticide, and poses a serious threat to ecosystems and human health. The advanced oxidation technology based on persulfate is considered a promising approach for removing trace pesticides from water. The synthesis of a persulfate activator for the rapid and efficient degradation of atrazine was studied. RESULTS A novel rod-like sulfur-doped Co 3 O 4 (S-Co 3 O 4 ) was prepared via the hard template method and used as a persulfate activator to degrade atrazine. The removal efficiency of atrazine (10 mM) could be up to 100% in the presence of peroxymonosulfate (1 mM) activated by S-Co 3 O 4 (50 mg L −1 ) within 7 min. CONCLUSION The nanorod structure of S-Co 3 O 4 is conducive to mass transfer and increases the probability of reaction between substances, and sulfur doping increases the interfacial charge transfer capability. The mechanism of atrazine degradation was mainly attributed to the combined effects of •OH and SO 4 •− , with the effect of SO 4 •− being more important. The main degradation pathways of atrazine are dichlorination, hydroxylation and dealkylation, corresponding to the cleavage of Cl1-C9, N5-C10 and N6-C11, respectively. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry (SCI).